Lions Over All 3: The Circle Of Death
by DarthRushy
Summary: Kion has been defeated and his body destroyed, yet he still lives. Hidden underneath an old tree, with a worser thirst for vengeance than ever before, Kion only has his voice left to use as a weapon. Can the Pridelanders avoid becoming his pawns or will they kill each other in his stead?
1. Chapter 1

New day, new chores. It wasn't easy to take on the duties and responsibilities of the Royal Mjuzi, especially given that Rafiki had been killed during the chaos emanating from the warring prides. But King Simba had given her the role with faith in her abilities. Makini smiled as she recalled the ceremony, and how Simba had even pointed out that error was nature's own way of teaching. A lesson that Rafiki himself had taught him once, perhaps. She'd have to ask about that.

As the sun begun to set, Makini returned to the Mjuzi tree, satisfied. Today she'd healed a rash, hid a baby zebra from a naughty hyena(a leftover from Janja's days) and even managed to settle a deal between the notoriously demanding crocodiles and hippos for watering hole rights. Inside the cooling tree, hidden from the burning sun, Makini washed herself and then committed to some final tasks such as preparing her tools and potions for tomorrow and of course... checking on the patient.

Kion, now known amongst the Pridelanders as the Son of Scar, was hidden in a secret cave under the Mjuzi tree formed naturally out of the gigantic roots. There, what was left of him was tightly tied from various places, keeping his body immobile and preventing him from literally falling apart until he heals... though Makini knew that even if he did, he'd never move again on his own. His body was a wreck. Whether he'd even think again was in question, since the former prince had been in a coma since the terrible fall.

Nevertheless, Makini was proud of her ability to patch him up again, a true medical feat that would have made even Rafiki himself smile. Or that's what she thought anyway. And to be honest, him being permanently asleep was probably for the best anyway, given what a volatile person he'd been.

As for Vitani herself, she had made herself an invaluable member of Simba's new, stronger pride and took a particular delight in mentoring the younger huntresses and keeping a strict discipline over the pride. Not quite the fanatical level that Zira had once demanded, but enough that the pride developed a more fearsome reputation, which Simba had decided to encourage, to ensure the pride's future was secure when Prince Kovu and Princess Kiara take over.

At her request, Makini had told no one of Kion's continued survival, as he would likely be killed immediately. Since one of the most important things her mentor had taught her was respect for all life, Makini had relented and kept her patient a secret from the world. She had no idea how long this was going to go on for, but as months had passed and nothing had changed, she grew used to the routine of taking care of him.

Every day, including today and now, she'd jump out of the tree, move the bushes and fall through a hole into the little room under the tree, where the sack containing Kion was tethered to various roots. She checked everything - his temperature, blood, she tapped on an unbroken bone... all normal. But he was still asleep. Still waiting for something. Who knows, what.

* * *

"Makiiiniiiii!" A hoarse, feminine voice cried from the tree. Fast as lightning, Makini dashed out of the cave. So fast that she broke her Mjuzi staff against the cave entrance.

"Argh! Not again." Makini muttered and climbed up the tree to see who was there. To her surprise, it was Vitani, unusually agitated even for her and shivering.  
"Vitani? What's the matter?"

Vitani growled in frustration, standing up only through force of will. "Some kind of illness. You better wear a mask."  
Deciding to take her advice, Makini picked up Rafiki's old mask(made of bark) and carefully approached to poke around Vitani's body. "Lay down now. That's an order. Okay... what's the symptoms?"

"Uh... general terrible-ness." Vitani said.

Makini stroked her chin in thought. "So, nausea?"

"If that means sick, then yeah." The lioness snapped. Her patience was normally... well, non-existent and by this point, she felt ready to snap Makini's neck if she irritated her enough.

"Dizzy?"

Vitani scoffed. "My head's spinning like a kicked cub."

"Open your mouth... no coughing? No snot?" Makini twitched, becoming actively concerned now as the answer began revealing itself. "Well, it could just be a stomach virus..."

Vitani interrupted her with a simple order: "Cure it."

"I'm not curing anything until I'm sure of what I'm curing." She held up a finger right as Vitani unsheathed her claws. "And if you want to be cured at all, you'll do as I say. Now, hold still."

She remained motionless as Makini stuck a small thorn into her paw and then squeezed a few drops of blood into a bowl, which she then filled with some other liquids and blooms from an unknown flower. The baboon began to swirl the bowl around until it gave her the answer she was looking for. All color drained from her face.

"What is it?" Vitani asked, seeing her expression drop. "What?! Don't keep me in suspense, am I dropping dead today or tomorrow? What?!"

Makini gulped. "Um... well, this isn't an exact science, but um... I'd say you're pregnant."

* * *

Thanks to the airiness of the old tree and the many gaps between the roots and holes, the voices easily drifted down below to the room beneath the tree.

 _"I'd say you're pregnant."_

In the shadows, just one yellow, glowing eye snapped open and swiveled around in its eyesocket until focusing on the ceiling where the voice had come from.

 _Pregnant._


	2. Chapter 2

Vitani looked like she was about to explode. "... pregnant?"

"That's what the bowl says." Makini shrugged.

"What did you put in there?!"

Makini blinked. "Does it matter? I-" Vitani cut her off. "It matters if a bloody bowl is telling me I have a cub!" She began to breathe heavily, a dread setting in. Every single Outsider knew that she and Kion had been mates. There would be no question as to who the father was. The possibilities began rolling through her head, and none of them good. "Are you _absolutely_ sure?" she demanded.

"Positive." Makini said quietly.

Vitani nodded gravely. "Then I'll have to leave, immediately. I'm my cub's only chance of survival." She bit her lip and was shocked to feel tears springing into her eyes. This sort of desperate fear wasn't something she'd experienced since very early childhood training with Zira and she hated herself for feeling it now, especially in front of the baboon. But she couldn't help feeling terrified for the cub. Not only was it coming to life with a pre-packaged reputation thanks to its father, but Vitani didn't have the slightest clue what to do with a cub. She'd always been absolutely certain that if she was to have a cub, it would be in a pride with plenty of older lionesses to support her, the way it was actually meant to be. Not to mention she'd expected her mate to be with her every step of the way.

Oh well. Best to live in the present and not get lost in the future. That had been Kion's mistake. "I'll head for the jungle. It's a thick place, plenty of smells. Nobody could track us down there." Vitani said confidently.

Makini pointed down at the floor. "What about... you know?"

The lioness sighed and lowered her head. "He's dead already. I'll say goodbye.

* * *

Pointedly refusing Makini's offer of help, Vitani ran down the tree and landed on the ground where the baboon led her to the secret room under the branches.

There, her mate, now unrecognisable, hung in a sort of sack. With his distorted body and scarred face, he looked like ghoul from a nightmare.

Vitani drew a breath. "Kion... I don't know if you're still in there somewhere, but we have a child. A cub. You're gone now, so... I'll look after it. I promise, I won't let Simba or anyone else get their paws on our baby. Perhaps one day... he'll be a mighty king."

"Perhaps?"

Both the lioness and the baboon froze and felt their hearts skip a beat. Kion's one good eye opened and glared at them. "Perhaps?" He croaked again.

"Kion!" Vitani gasped. "You're-!"

"I could hear you up there, you know." Kion said slowly. "Every word. Don't lie to me... about my cub, Vitani. And don't you dare rob him of his destiny."

Vitani shook her head, bewildered. "His destiny...? Kion, whatever destiny he might have is not here. He's just a cub and I can't defend him from the entire pride. Why are we even discussing this?"

Makini gathered her courage and stepped between the two, staring down Kion. "Putting the cub at risk is not an option. And you should be grateful to us to even be alive here and know that he exists."

Kion's one eye squinted. "I am. That's why I'm offering you my knowledge and expertise to help my own baby! But backing down, scurrying into the jungle like a coward, that... is not the option. We have to be smart. We have to ensure the cub will be at home... at home!"

"And how exactly do we do that?" Vitani demanded. Kion blinked and his eye turned to the baboon. Vitani got the hint. "Makini, why don't you take a hike? I'll talk to you later."

Makini wasn't an idiot. She knew very well that the two plotted treason. It was their thing, after all. But so long as Kion was her patient, she couldn't very well put him in danger... and there was the cub to think of. Oh, why couldn't Rafiki teach her about how to deal with something like this! Grumbling, she left.

As soon as she was out of earshot, Kion said: "Forget about the pride. They exist to do what we demand of them. The only true threat to our cub's safety is Kiara. We dispose of her and introduce your cub. From that point on, my father cannot afford any harm to come to his only royal descendant."

Vitani scowled. " _Dispose_ of her? You make it sound so easy. And ugly."

"Don't tell me you've gone soft!" Kion cackled, the light humorously dancing in his eye. "You always hated the idea. Kiara is the stepping stone to our son's rightful rule. It's as simple as that."

"And what about Kovu? You can't ask me to kill my own brother. I'm not that depraved." Vitani said flatly.

"Once you tell them about your cub, it should invalidate Kovu's position. And who said anything about you doing it? I'd never risk you."

Vitani snorted. "I feel so loved. So who? Makini? That'll be day."

Kion's eye bulged in irritation. "Do I have to come up with everything? Is it really that hard for a cold-hearted Outsider like you to do some dirty work? Zira's daughter, hello? Find someone with nothing to lose and a lot to gain, and exploit him! _Think!_ "

* * *

Vitani took a deep sniff of the clear air after leaving the secret room and scanned the horizons. Motivated by her mate's words, she nodded. It was the Outsider way to _take_ from the weaker ones what was wanted and needed, and right now... she wanted and needed her cub to have a pride and future. And she sure as hell wasn't weaker than Simba.


	3. Chapter 3

Makini waited outside the tree patiently until she saw Vitani emerge. The lioness didn't even acknowledge her and ran off on her own errand. Sighing, the baboon considered going to sleep, but knew she'd get none at the moment.

So she returned to the dark chamber, where Kion's glowing yellow eye gazed at her mesmerisingly. However, before she could open her mouth, he spoke first: "Thanks. You've been a huge help."

She was taken dumbstruck by his kind words. "... seriously?"

"Seriously. You said it yourself: I'd be dead if it weren't for your efforts. You have my sincere gratitude."

Makini blushed. "I... it was nothing. Wow, I didn't expect you to be..."

Kion's eye squinted humorously. "What? Sane?"

"Yeah."

"I'm not in a position to make demands. So I don't. A predator adapts, Makini." Kion's voice took on a lecturing tone. "For example, when I met you, you proved to have powers that I could use against my enemy. The first thing I learned in the Outlands was to take notice of my surroundings. What was useful and what wasn't."

Makini sat down, engrossed. "And I am useful?"

"You are _very_ useful. My instinct tells me you will change the face of the Pride Lands." Kion said, making the baboon laugh. "What?"  
"Me? I'm the Royal Mjuzi. I can't be made to betray the King." Makini said confidently. "I'd give my life first!"

Kion chuckled. "But wasn't Scar the King when Rafiki helped Simba to the throne?"

That caught Makini off-guard. "I guess... but Simba was the rightful King! And he still is! And you can stop trying to get into my head because it won't work! You're a patient and that's that!"

Satisfied with herself, Makini turned around and pulled the roots aside to crawl out.

"Good night!" Kion said, continuing to be uncharacteristically polite.

* * *

A few days later, Makini was woken up by a loud snapping sound. Peeking out of her tree, she saw to her great shock that five crocodiles had gathered near her tree, snapping their jaws. "Makini!" Their leader Makuu called. "Come down here so I can talk with you!"

Makini scratched her head, confused. What on earth could the fearsome crocodile want to do with her of all people? She was about to jump out before she remembered caution. "Only if you give me your word as leader that I won't get eaten down there!"

Makuu rolled his eyes. "You have my word as leader that you won't get eaten down here."

"Okay!" Grabbing her newest bakora stick, Makini jumped out of the tree and gracefully landed in the midst of Makuu's group. "So, what can I do for you crocs today?"

"There's a disease outbreak in the rest of my herd." Makuu announced in his typical authoritative tone. "I need a healer to fix it."

Worry lines began to etch into Makini's face. Though Rafiki had given her plenty of instructions, she hadn't had to deal with a virus outbreak before. "Uh-huh. Symptoms?"

Makuu's eyes widened for a moment, as if he hadn't expected Makini to ask that. "Uh... their scales are's falling off!"

"Falling... off?" Makini sputtered, confused.  
"Errr... yeah. And they're all red now. And itchy. Very itchy."  
Makini frowned. "Okay, I get the picture. I'll be there in an hour, uh... where is there, anyway?"  
"In the canyon right next to the big log everyone uses to get into the Outlands!" Makuu announced, and his crocodiles left.

Makini shrugged and climbed back up to the tree to get her potions, only to hear a strange hissing come from beneath her feet... from Kion's chamber. She quickly made her way down there.

"What in Mufasa's name - no offense - do you want?!" Makini demanded. "I just got a very urgent call."

"From Makuu?" Kion guessed. "This tree is really rotten. I could hear every word. And let me tell you... there's not a single crocodile who'd hang out in that canyon. They're not stupid. It's dry every season. Especially now."

Makini frowned. "So... they were lying?"

Kion tried to nod, but found that he couldn't. So instead, he said "Yes. If I had to offer a wild guess, I'd say that they're trying to trade you to whoever still lives in the Outlands for access to water. When I was in Zira's pride, we always had to dig deep for water, so we knew where the streams are, even in the Pride Lands. Logically, every other inhabitant would know the same."

"B-but I'm me! And Makuu is a respected leader! I don't..."

Kion cut her off. "Everyone needs healers. And no one in the Pride Lands will ever know where you have gone. Not a soul."

"They wouldn't do that!" Makini insisted. "Makuu has changed. He's helped the Pridelanders! You're just paranoid, as always." Without another word, she crawled out of the room. Kion called after her, but she didn't want to hear any more and headed off to the canyon.

* * *

Makini did not return to the tree that night. Instead, at around midnight, a rustling in the roots blocking the entrance to Kion's pitchblack chamber awoke him.

Kion's one eye blinked. "Makini?"

"No. It's me. I thought I'd keep the little whiner in terror for an extra day or two. Just to deliver the message close to home."

Though it hurt him, Kion grinned widely. "Ah, Jasiri... I like you much more like this."

The hyena shrugged. "The dark side's done me good."


	4. Chapter 4

Jasiri observed Kion's twisted, incapacitated form, hanging from the vines attached to the roots of the Mjuzi tree. She wore a smug smirk. "So... paralyzed?"  
"Well, you win some, you lose some..." Kion shrugged and gave Jasiri an awful grin of broken teeth. "It matters not. My son will carry on from where I stopped."

"Mm, yeah, your sourpuss of a mate mentioned you had a little brat on the way. Congrats, I guess. Shame you're not gonna be sticking around much longer... I'll miss your..." she waved her paw around vaguely. "... actually, no, I won't miss you at all."

Kion snorted. "It's mutual. How's Makuu?"

The hyena relaxed against a vine and hid a yawn behind a paw. "Oh, same as ever. I told him I'd lead the crocs to a new water source if he scared the wits out of your baboon pal."

"Will you?"

"Pfft!" Jasiri snorted. "No!"

The two shared an immature giggle. "So what's your plan with her? I mean, I like stirring up trouble as much as the next hyena, but there's this little thing called the Domino Effect, and I ain't seein' it here!"

Kion rolled his eye. "Of course you don't, you're a hyena. Brains like an earthworm."

"If you're trying to flatter me, just remember that I can snap whatever's left of your bones right here and now." Jasiri growled. "Simba would probably give me a whole herd to eat."

"Yeah, a herd's good. But how does all the herds sound? If my son becomes heir of Pride Rock, then everyone who supported him would be in a position of power. That includes you."

Jasiri nodded. "Hmm, I do like that. Say, do you have anything to eat around here?"

The crippled lion groaned. "Can we finish plotting first?"  
"... nah, I'm gonna go see if Makini's got anything stocked. Be back in a sec!" Jasiri said cheerfully and ran out from under the branches much to Kion's annoyance. He could hear the scratching sounds her paws made as they climbed up the trunk of the tree.

"Hyenas!"

Soon enough, she returned with her mouth full of baobab fruit, sat on her haunches in front of the unamused lion and began loudly munching and slurping in front of him intentionally. "So? Plan?"

"... as the Royal Mjuzi, Makini has more access to Simba and the others than any other animal in the kingdom aside from the majordomo. She's young and vulnerable without Rafiki. She, and my mate, are the two people whose strings we have to pull just the right way for them to eliminate Kovu and Kiara."

Jasiri nodded along, playing up her lack of interest. "Hm. That sounds kinda hard. I'm not into hard stuff. Gives me a headache."

"That's why I'm giving you the easy assignment. All you have to do is spread some nasty rumours. Anything, uh, tell them the King and Queen are deliberately withholding water from the crocodiles, tell them they're secretly allied with the hyenas, tell them anything! Not enough for an uprising, but enough to dislodge some animals' faith. Just enough for Makini to listen... to _me_."

"Maybe." Jasiri said, rubbing her belly. "Maaaaybe..."

Kion's eye glared at her. "You are gonna do it, Jasiri. And it will work."

"Oh yeah, like your other plans worked out so well." The hyena deadpanned, and grinned smugly as she sensed the boiling anger in the lion. She had no doubt that if Kion still had functioning arms and legs, she would've been ripped to shreds, but no... all the lion had was a voice that was too whiny to die. Jasiri was sorely tempted to just walk up to Simba right now and see his face as she explained everything Kion had been up to since his supposed death, but something held her back.

"It _can_ work. It's what we always wanted. We can still win, you just need to believe it can work." Kion insisted.

Jasiri snapped. "It's not what we always wanted! It's just all we have left now... because of you."

"Don't tell me you've gone back to missing your hyena clan. They, and your sister, were never as strong as you and me. And in this world, strength is all that matters."

"Says the guy who can't even move a limb."

Kion gave a crooked smile. "Exactly. I tried and failed to change things. But I can still make it work for my son, if you help me. Won't cost you a thing, but it could win you everything. I know you want to. Because I want to. And you and I have always been the same."

Jasiri gulped, her confidence worn down by Kion's tempting words. The lion's actions had changed her entire life and point of view to her displeasure, yet still he had that effect on her, making her see things from alien perspectives and changing her priorities. Still, one question niggled on her mind: "How do I know your son won't go back on your promises?"

"Keep being useful and you keep being valuable. It's simple math."

The hyena scowled, but she had no comeback. It was always going to be either Simba or Kion's son. Or complete chaos, but Jasiri wasn't that crazy. She just had to pick her poison. And so she grasped one of Kion's limp, scarred paws and shook it gently. "We have a deal."


	5. Chapter 5

Two days passed, and Kion had no visitors... and no sustenance. Hunger and thirst began to fill every aspect of his mind, every thought. He'd laugh from time to time, at the thought that he'd simply starve to death down here without any witnesses. Jasiri and Vitani were out there doing their thing, disrupting the Pridelanders' faith in Simba one incident at a time. Makini would return... eventually, once somebody negotiated with Makuu. And she'd be one step closer to Kion's side.

But none of that would matter if his body gave up.

So when Kion first heard rustling in the tree above him, he didn't react, assuming he was hallucinating at this point. Suddenly, a pair of pink hands broke through the pile of dried leaves and branches the concealed the entrance to Kion's little hole in the ground. They were followed by a ray of blinding sunshine and one delirious baboon with awful red scratches all over.

"Makini!" Kion rasped to no avail. She collapsed right in front of him, and there was nothing the crippled lion could do. Not that he wanted to save her. If he could've moved, he would've simply torn the meat from the bone and drunk her blood to rejuvenate himself. Kion's lone eye bulged in desire and fury as potential food lied there on the ground unconscious, _right in front of him_. His nostrils flared, filling up with her scent - the smell of prey. "Damn you, father!" he hissed, wishing now more than ever that he could simply move. "Makini! Get up!"

It was torture to the lion who was so used to his power. His deteriorating, useless muscles still remembered how to fight and push and pull. His teeth begged to chew and tear. Nothing in him had forgotten, but nothing moved either, save for his one eye rolling in its eyesocket, and a twitching mouth filling rapidly with saliva. He began to drool like an infant. "Wake up, you useless sack of dung!" he moaned.

An hour passed, maybe two. He had no way of keeping time anymore. Finally the baboon began to make noises and pushed herself on her back. "Thirsty..." she mumbled sluggishly.  
"I can't give you anything!" Kion snapped. "You have what you need up in the tree, now wake up!"

The baboon crawled out of the hole, incredibly weak, and another hour passed. Kion fell into a sleep-like state, and recovered when Makini finally poured water into his own mouth and gave him a few moles to eat. It wasn't enough, but it was sustenance for now. The two looked at one another as Kion ate, two miserable souls in hurt bodies.

* * *

Kion spat out the last bone.

"I guess I should consider myself lucky you came back." He said dryly. "The worst menace in the history of the Pride Lands nearly just died without anyone noticing."

Makini snorted. "Luck had nothing to do with it. You were right. It was Jasiri. She made a deal with the crocodiles, to _buy_ me as if I was some kind of slave! And Makuu did it! Just like that. When I tell Simba..."

"What will happen? You and I both know Simba doesn't have the power to go up against the crocodiles. At least not over something as trivial as one baboon. When I was in the Lion Guard, he always held us back from _really_ punishing the animals. Why do you think we never got rid of Janja? Consequences, Makini. He always kept on going about the consequences, because he wasn't strong enough to deal with them!"

The baboon hugged herself, as if trying to deny the terrible reality of Kion's words.

Kion continued: "But when I became an Outsider... Janja vanished. Thurston stopped being trouble. The Pride Lands prospered, because I took care of things like a lion king should!"

Makini glared up at the evil, twisted form of Kion, her dark green eyes glinting with tears. She found it impossible to associate what Kion had become with any kind of justice. "You're a monster! The Circle of Life doesn't matter to you any more than it does to Makuu!" She wished now, more than ever, that Rafiki could be here. The wise old mandrill would be invaluable in troubled times like these. Though she was dedicated to her duty as Royal Mjuzi, she didn't feel she could ever be what he was. She couldn't even stay calm! Shwari...

"No, it doesn't." Kion agreed.

She bit her bottom lip and stared at the ground angrily, breathing in heavy, rapid bursts as her anxiety built up. "I will find a way. I will make sure those green beasts don't get away with this, and Jasiri! And I'll do it the right way! By following what I believe in! You'll see. The world is not as horrible as you make it out to be. Rafiki could see beauty everywhere." she said wistfully, remembering when her mentor was teaching her, and her new home seemed like the most magical land of potential. Why was it so scary now?

"Makini..." Kion drawled as the baboon grabbed her newest bakora stick and pushed the roots out of her way to leave.

"What?!" she snapped.

"At least let Vitani accompany you. She'll protect you. She needs you to keep her cub safe."

Makini paused for a second, letting the words roll through her mind. For once, something that Kion had said didn't seem like a bad idea at all. After all, the wild lioness _was_ dependent on her. She could use that as leverage, yes...

Without replying, Makini left the dark, dingy hole, leaving Kion to plot and ponder once again.


End file.
